Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 7A state championship

High School On SI is going on the record to make our prediction on the FHSAA 7A title game

Venice High wide receive Omari Hayes takes on Miami Columbus defender Ahmere Foster (#5). Venice defeated Miami Columbus 35-7 to win the Class 8A semi-final Friday night in Venice. Sar Fbh Venice 020 / Mike Lang / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Class 7A state playoffs continued in the state of Florida last week and the classification did not disappoint. 

Heading into Friday, it helped set up a fantastic state championship matchup, and the talented field of teams is now down to just the final two clubs. The state championship game will feature a intriguing matchup, as the two of the state's strongest programs, Lake Mary and Venice, square off at Pitbull Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

>>>FHSAA 2024 PLAYOFF BRACKETS<<<

Check out who High School On SI predicts who will win the Class 7A state championship game on Saturday afternoon at Pitbull Stadium in Miami, Florida.

CLASS 7A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME (Dec. 14, 12:30PM)

Lake Mary (12-2) vs. Venice (13-1)

Andy V's quick hit: Might want to make yourself comfortable on Saturday afternoon because this game could go on for awhile.

That's because the next-level kinda scoring that could take place could push this game beyond three hours.

Both teams feature high-powered scoring attacks, with Venice touting one the top offenses around and averaging 49.7 points per game. The Indians lone loss on the season came against IMG Academy at home in a game Venice could've won.

John Peacock has a two-back duo that the Indians have leaned on all season long in senior Jamarice 'Gata' Wilder (1,738 yards, 25 touchdowns) and sophomore Dorien Irving-Jones (1,311 yards, 17 touchdowns).

University of Northern Iowa commit Jayce Nixon has continued to get better within the scope of the offense, producing some stellar numbers along the way. The southpaw has completed 171-of-277 passes for 2,423 yards and 30 touchdowns.

It helps when you have some of the pass catchers Nixon has at his disposal, with Ole Miss signee Winston Watkins Jr. (85 catches, 1,075 yards, 17 touchdowns) and Ryan Matulevich (45 catches, 795 yards, 11 touchdowns) both being the primary targets.

On the defensive side of things for the Indians, Asharri Charles is the big name to watch for along Venice's front seven. The Power 4 prospect has tallied 101 tackles, 14.5 for loss and 10.5 sacks. Venice's linebacking corps is led by Landon Marsters (167 tackles), Ben Zarkiewicz (153 tackles) and Eli Jones (120 tackles).

Can't foret about the powerful right leg of Florida State signee Brunno Reus, who has knocked down 84-of-86 extra points and 8-of-12 on field goals, with a long of 53 yards. Reus could be a kicker that one day is playing in the NFL.

Over to Lake Mary and the Rams have been pretty potent on offense themselves, averaging 38.2 points per game.

One of the state's top signal callers all season long has been Notre Dame commitment Noah Grubbs. The Rams' quarterback has thrown for 2,781 yards and 34 touchdowns this season.

His wide receiving corps has been a solid group throughout the 2024 campaign, with the primary targets being Carson Friedman (828 yards, seven touchdowns) and Chase Hinshaw (588 yards, nine touchdowns).

Don't think that the Rams can't run the ball themselves as Isaiah Thomas has gone for 1,101 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Lake Mary's defense has been very underated at times and features one of Central Florida's top linebackers in Luke Prieto, who has notched 91 tackles, 17 for loss and 13 sacks.

If the Rams want to win this game, they'll need to go blow for blow in this heavyweight bout between the two high-powered offenses. Venice has scored with the best of 'em and it'll be a challenge in keeping this Indians' offense at bay. We see a high scoring affair coming to the 305 this weekend.

PREDICTION: Venice 56, Lake Mary 48

2024 FHSAA high football state championship projections

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 1A state championship

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 2A state championship

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 4A state championship

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 5A state championship

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 6A state championship

---

Follow SBLive Florida throughout the 2024 high school football season for Live Updates, the most up to date Schedules & Scores and complete coverage from the preseason through the state championships!

Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school football news.

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone - as well as follow your favorite teams and top games - you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App| Download Android App

-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl